Jumper: A Way Out
by Crazy Chick's Crazy Friend
Summary: Mary's Story. I think she has a very interesting story to tell. Pls review
1. Chapter 1

Jumper : A Way Out

David

It was no use. Sleep was not going to come tonight. Her mind was running rampant with thoughts of David. She smiled softly. How handsome he had grown. How tall. How beautiful he was. He looked pained, hurt and came to her looking for some answers she could not give. It stabbed at her heart to see him hurting. She wanted to bring him into her arms, hold him to her as she did when he was little. She wanted to ... but knew she couldn't. She turned her head to look at the clock. The red numbers shone like a beacon in her darkened room. It was very early. A perfect time. The shallow breathing of her husband told her that her he was in deep sleep and will not be disturbed. Silently she slipped out of bed and out of her bedroom. She crept down the hall stopping briefly at her daughter's room. It, too, was quiet. She had asked who the handsome young man was at the door. But Mary could not bring herself to answer truthfully. The truth hurt too much. Then again how do you explain?

Moving on she decended the stairs and picked her way through the living room to her adjoining office. It was dark and she only turned on a side table lamp to illuminate the room. Her office desk hid a small key she took to unlock a small filing cabinet nearby. Inside another key and another box revealed a picture. David. It was a photo she looked at often on nights like these. No one in the house other than she knew about David or her "other life" as she spitefully called it. Not her husband of 17 years or her daughter, Sophie. Poor Sophie. How desparately she was wanted to make up for the pain of leaving David behind. And most of the time it was enough to dote on her. Every kiss, every hug came in two's. "Why do you always give me two kisses" Sophie had asked once. "Oh," Mary answered, "one for you and one for you to give away. You know Sophie you are very lucky. You have a mommy and Daddy who love you very much. It makes me very sad to think that there are little girls...and little boys who don't get hugs from their Mommies." She hugged the little girl to her thinking of her beautiful David, then felt the liquid welling in her eyes and spilling over. "Mommy what's wrong?" Sophie asked a little freightened to see her mother's tears. "Nothing. Nothing Sweetheart. Mommy's ok"

Close, so close the Paladins were to catching David. She did all she could to slow them down but in the end she knew it was getting harder and harder to do so. Also, Roland was on to her. More than once she considered leaving the Organization, a very dangerous thing to do, because she could no longer defend it. But she stayed thinking the best way to protect David, the best way to love David, was to keep an eye on the Organization sworn to kill him.

It was easy at first. At first he was unaware of his power and she hoped it was all a mistake. She trained in the Organization, studied their text and rose through the ranks. She believed in the cause at first. She believed she was in an army for God, believed everything they told her. Until she ran into Regan, a former Paladin. He showed her revealing things about the Organization they were hiding. She asked questions and then discovered she herself was being spied on. Bitterly she realized Regan was right about alot of things about the Organization. She was in a dangerous position and powerless to stop it. She did her best to let the Organization think she rejected everything Regan told her. She geared her training to tracking and in this way was able to hide and cover David from the Organization as much as possible. But David made it very hard when he was jumping so frequently. It was only a matter of time before Roland caught up with him. It was only a matter of time before Roland found out about everything.

Roland would suspect her of treason against the Organization. She had to throw him off somehow. He expected every Paladin in the Organization to be as dedicated as he was, he had killed his own son, the boy was fourteen. Mary couldn't bring herself to do that. But she knew now she was trapped and David was in terrible danger.

"So you're a Paladin and I'm a Jumper. What happens now?"

"I'm giving you a head start, son, because I love you" They were watching her, what else could she say? David left hurt and betrayed. She was left hurt and betrayed. Then she was angry.

She was angry because they had used her, lied to her. Made her leave her son and her husband. Made her believe what she was doing was in God's name. And she knew they would hunt her down and slaughter her before they would let her leave. There had to be a way to save them both. Putting the picture away she headed back upstairs. Her thoughts turned to someone else. Regan. Regan offered to help her once. Maybe she could still go to him. She had come to a crossroads and now was the time to make a decision. She had to make things right. For David. For herself. She had to find Regan.


	2. Chapter 2

Jumper  
Chapter 2  
Mary

David sat alone atop of his favorite getaway, the Great Sphinx, in Cairo. It was peaceful and the view was unequaled. A few short hours ago he saw Millie safely back to Ann Arbor at her parents house. He returned here as he often did when he needed to think.

He thought about the last 3 days. There were so many unanswered questions. And no one he trusted to get answers from. He wanted to talk to Roland. He would be able to answer all of his questions but it came with a steep price. David smiled and wondered if Roland found a way to get down from the cliff he left him on. He was confident that Roland was a man who came prepared for anything. And he was sure Roland was out there somewhere planning their next meeting. Their first meeting in his apartment was odd. David sipped on his beer thinking back and frowning slightly. Roland kept asking "Who's helping you?" There wasn't a whole lot of time to think about the question. Now David was wondering what Roland had meant by that. No one was helping him. And yet Roland had insisted that there was somebody. Who? The only time someone had helped him was when his mother showed up in that police station in Rome. Of course at the time, he had no idea what she was. He was in complete shock that she was there at all, helping him to get away, how didn't even matter. Roland's words came back to him. "How did you last this long? Who's protecting you?" His mother? What did that mean? There was a duelality there that David didn't understand. She was a Paladin, Paladins kill Jumpers. She was a mother, his mother. Could she do it? Could she allow someone else to do it? Apparently, no. David spent most of his life convinced his mother didn't care about anything but herself. Not him or his father. Could he have been wrong? Did she love him? Even a little? Another thought occurred to David. What if she was helping him, protecting him? She could be in a lot of danger if other Paladins, like Roland, found out. From what little he knew about Paladins, he knew they would definately frown on that.

David finished his beer with more questions than what he started with. Who was Mary Rice, if that was even her name anymore? There was a sadness in her eyes when he went to see her. Like she expected this would happen sooner or later. He knew there would be excuses and he thought he was ready for them. He tried to be strong and stay focused on why he had come to see her. But from the moment she appeared at the door he felt his strength gave way . How does a mother leave her child behind? What was it she said? "I only had two choices, kill you or leave you." What about the chioce to tell the Paladins to go to hell? Was it even a option? David didn't know. All he knew was that she opted to leave and join them. "I did what I had to do. I've never stopped thinking about you. Not even for one day." These weren't the kind of answers he expected. These answers spoke of love. She hugged him. And for a brief moment his anxiety melted away. For a brief moment there were no Paladins, no Jumpers. There was only her. He wanted to live in that moment forever. To remember her touch, her perfume. Instead he seared them into his his memory like one of the thousands of pictures he had once had scattered across his apartment. "Good Luck.", she whispered and opened the door for him to leave. When he left he felt just as lost and hurt as he did all those years ago.

David sat on top of the Great Sphinx of Cairo fighting back tears that filled his eyes. _Why?_ David thought. His heart ached for an answer. Why was he given such a gift when it came with such a crippling price? All he wanted was a normal family doing normal things. Like Millie's family. He spent alot of time with them when they were kids. Her mother, Ellen, seemed genuinely happy and relived to see him. She hugged him. And although he was touched by it, it felt awkward to be lavished with such affection. He wasn't used to displays of affection from his father. Oh, deep down David knew his father cared and loved him. But his father was a victim of his mother's choices as much as he was. There was a time when David remembered laughter and ear to ear smiles from his father, but things changed when his mother left. When she left, she took those things with her. David was left to grow up with an embittered father who, along with his son, didn't know how to cope without Her.

_So what do I do now? _He wanted to go find his mother. But wasn't sure if that was a good idea. He could put her in even more danger. But if she was in danger, he had to help her. But how? David felt helpless. He felt frustrated. But he knew his jumping was bound to attract the Paladin's attention sooner or later and there would be another confrontation.

David sat on top of the Great Sphinx of Cairo and enjoyed the view. The sun was almost set and the sky was on fire. He relaxed a bit and decided to enjoy the here and now. Later would come later.


End file.
